Program description

Quality of Life Research Grants have been created to support quality of life cancer research that has the potential to make a significant impact on the burden of disease in patients, survivors and caregivers. These grants are intended to explore psychosocial, survivorship, symptom control, supportive care and end-of-life issues, research gaps, needs and opportunities, or models for survivorship care. The grants are meant to accelerate and focus the knowledge gained from scientific findings, in the short or long term, into outcomes that will result in the reduced burden or enhanced quality of life for cancer patients in Canada and elsewhere.

The goal of this grant program is to support and accelerate research addressing the creation and application of new knowledge relevant to improving quality of life (as described above). The program is particularly interested in research that has the potential for practical applications within the domain of knowledge translation. Applications can be from multidisciplinary teams or individual investigators. Multidisciplinary collaboration is encouraged.

Examples of projects that may be appropriate for this grant program include, but are not limited to:

qualitative or quantitative studies

case control or cohort studies

clinical studies

health systems, health economics and health services research

methodology development

measurement tools development

efficacy or effectiveness studies of novel interventions

CCS welcomes applications for all cancer types. Given the recent merger between the CCS and CBCF, applications in the area of breast cancer research are encouraged in all CCS research competitions.

Scientific focus of the program

This grant program is designed to support research addressing quality of life scientific questions that will improve supportive care, survivorship and end-of-life care.

Funds available

Budgets awarded will not exceed $300,000 over 2 or 3 years per grant. Funding will be provided to support the direct costs of research, including supplies, expenses, wages and equipment associated with the proposed work. Equipment requests of up to $10,000 can be included within the proposed budget but must be appropriately justified. Grants will be renewable.

Peer review

There will be a multi-stage application and review process. Applicants will be required to submit a letter of intent (LOI) and selected applicants will be invited to submit a full application. A multidisciplinary peer review committee will be assembled to review the LOIs and full applications. The peer review committee will consist of scientific experts with broad expertise, along with community representatives to provide patient/survivor/caregiver perspectives.

Review Criteria

The review criteria will include, but not be limited to, five assessment categories: Responsiveness to this funding mechanism, Research Strategy, Investigator(s), Environment, and Cancer Relevance. Panel members use the scientific merit and responsiveness rating scales. Applicants should note that the LOI review will result in the triage of applications; therefore, not all applicants will be invited to submit a full application.

Responsiveness

appropriateness of the application to this funding mechanism (specific and defined potential for impact on the burden of disease in patients, survivors and caregivers)

Research strategy

scientific merit and convincing rationale that considers critical review and analysis of preliminary data and/or published literature, as appropriate

identification of potential problems and how they will be addressed, including alternative approaches

potential of the project to make an advancement in our understanding of quality of life issues for cancer patients/survivors

quality of the knowledge translation and exchange strategy to disseminate research findings, as appropriate

appropriateness of the term and amount of support requested given the research proposed

Investigator(s)

appropriate leadership

qualifications and appropriate expertise of the investigator(s)

if project is collaborative or multidisciplinary, evidence of complementary and integrated expertise and appropriate resources

Environment

quality of the research environment in which the work will take place

Cancer relevance

potential impact on improving quality of life for cancer patients/survivors/caregivers

degree to which the proposed research addresses one of the Society’s strategic priorities to improve the quality of life of those living with and beyond cancer

Letter of Intent (LOI)

There is a limit of one grant application per Principal Investigator/Co-Principal Investigator in a competition. The LOI submission will require the following:

a scientific abstract

a summary of the proposed research* (maximum of 2 pages, single-spaced)

up to 3 pages of figures/tables/charts and associated legends (optional)

a responsiveness statement indicating the appropriateness of proposal to this funding opportunity

estimated annual budget

the names of the investigator(s) and CVs for the PI and any co-PIs

the names of suggested reviewers and reviewer exclusions

*The summary of the proposed research should include the following:

the specific research question to be addressed or hypothesis to be tested

background and scientific rationale

design and methodology

relevance of the proposed research to cancer

LOIs will be primarily reviewed based on their responsiveness to this funding opportunity and the scientific merit of the work proposed.

The LOI application form will be accessible through the CCS online grant application system EGrAMS. Please note that changes to the applicant list or significant changes to the scientific abstract after the LOI deadline are permitted. Changes must be provided to the CCS (research@cancer.ca) as soon as they are determined by the team to ensure proper adjudication.

Full application

When preparing the full application, the following will be required.

as part of the public (non-scientific) summary, a cancer relevance statement clearly describing the potential of this project to enhance the quality of life of cancer patients

a scientific abstract

a detailed scientific proposal clearly stating:

the aims of the project including any previous work done in the area, study design, methods and analysis

a description of the expected impact that research results will have on the burden of cancer or the advancement of knowledge

details of the investigator(s) including which member(s) of the research team will be responsible for which aspect of the project and a rationale for their inclusion in the project, as well as a description of the research environment where the work will take place.

a description of the knowledge translation and exchange strategy and how this work advances the mission of the Canadian Cancer Society.

The proposal will contain no more than 10 pages of single spaced text. In addition, 5 pages of data figures/tables/charts and their associated legends are allowed. Specific guidelines for the online application are available.

a budget justification related to the supplies, equipment and personnel associated with the research project. It must include the number of personnel required to complete the work and a description of their experience and/or education level and their commitment to the project. The budget request must be appropriate for the type of research proposed.

Multiple applications/multiple sources of funding

There must not be substantive overlap (more than 50%) with any pending application (including those at the abstract or Letter of Intent submission stage) to any other CCS research program as of this competition due date. Duplicate applications will not be accepted. The onus is on the applicant to indicate the extent (or absence) of overlap.

Applicants are reminded to review the eligibility and requirements section for details on scientific and financial reporting, funder acknowledgement, Canadian Cancer Society policies on open access and tobacco related funding.